This is the second in a series about what editors do, and why your mom is not a substitute for a professional copy or developmental editor. Though we love your mom. She’s nice. Because writers can’t un-know what they know in their heads, we often write in...

Recently, a friend of mine decided to not pay a professional copy editor to give his business book a thorough, official, real-live edit. Instead, he’s allowing the book to go to print after the review of “a friend.” I’m seeing this type of...